Novelty in the Method for the Combination of Gold and the Other Minerals

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a method for combining the different minerals used for the jewels comprising the process steps of thinning and fixing to each other the bottom and the top layers ( 1, 3 ), thinning by means of extruding from the cylinder the structure (A) that forms as a result of fixing the bottom and the top layers ( 1, 3 ), preparing the mixture comprising the welding material in the form of a plate and thus forming the intermediate layer ( 2 ), placing the intermediate layer ( 2 ) comprising the welding material between the two layers ( 1, 3 ) and injecting an oxygen-repelling gas, in order to obtain a fixed structure (A) by means of kiln-drying process carried out for a certain time at a particular temperature, obtaining the thin structure (B) by thinning the obtained fixed structure (A) by means of extruding it from the cylinder.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates to the golden or silver jewels sold in the jewelry and jewel sector. The invention relates particularly to the novelty in the combination of the gold and the compositions thereof, in order to meet the purchasing power of the consumer and to enable manufacturing the products at a lower cost in the jewelry and jewel sector.

BACKGROUND ART

Today there are jewels with many different designs made of various materials. Some of these are presented to use as the pieces of jewelry, and some jewels are obtained from simpler materials and equipment.

The gold mineral comprises ingots or extruded plates as 995 or 999. (The pure gold mineral is expressed as 1000.) This mineral is mixed with some other minerals such as, silver, zinc, brass, cadmium, indium and silica, etc., in order to melt it to obtain the gold with desired carat. The mixture of gold with other minerals is called the alloy. The gold reduced to desired carat value is poured in molten state in the drawplates and thus it is converted to ingot plates with various sizes. The melting temperature for this alloy may be 1100, 950, 850° C. depending on the carat. The gold plates thus obtained are depressed and extruded in the cylinders produced specially for the jewelry sector and their thickness is reduced to desired levels. It is possible to set the thickness to values varying from 0.5 micron up to 400 micron. It is also possible to subject the other minerals (such as silver, copper, and brass) to same process to reduce them into plates with desired thickness in microns.

As it is well known, the gold or silver jewels sold especially in the jewelry and jewel sector are produced and presented to sale in types having 22, 21, 18, 14, 10 and 8 carats. The definition of gold in the gold sector qualifies the purity of gold. The gold to be used in producing the jewels is not pure. Silver, copper and other various minerals may be incorporated in it. For example, 14 carat gold is closer to silver, while 24 carat gold is purer and dark in color. This is regarded as an international standard. As known, the price of gold has increased to a great extent during the recent years, as a result of the significant instabilities in the world. Consequently, the purchasing power of the consumer has dropped down to the minimum level. Hence, the jewels and the jewelry products manufactured have also become more expensive, due to the costliness of the raw material. As a result, the need has emerged for the alternative materials and products.

The patent document with patent no. TR 96/00540 under the classes C22C 5/02 and C22C 30/02 Ipc titled “a gold alloy” relates to a gold based alloy, which is suitable for the production of the jewels, money/coins and gold bars in the field of jewelry, has a purity varying between 8 and 22 carats, and contains a varying percentage of the other components like silver, copper and zinc in the alloys having three elements, four elements, etc. The alloy also contains the titanium element. At the heat treatment carried out during the aging process, a satisfactory proportion is obtained between the hardness and the aging time.

The patent document with patent no. US2003012679 titled “Gold alloys and master alloys for obtaining theme relates to a gold alloy comprising at least 33%=<gold, 0, 4%=>iridium, 2%=<Ge, 0.015%=<silicon<=0.3%, 0.02%=>phosphorus and 66%=>copper. The mixture also comprises 34%=>silver, 20%=>nickel and 25%=>zinc by weight. The invention also relates to a main alloy obtained from said gold alloy.

The patent document with patent no. GB469290 titled “Improvements in or relating to gold alloys” relates to a gold-aluminum alloy wherein the gold to aluminum ratio is 78,5/21,5, the aluminum content is increased in a way that it will not exceed 40% or said alloy comprises silver, tin, zinc, cadmium, bismuth and thallium metals individually or as combinations thereof. The metals used are in free oxide form. The alloy is obtained by heating the compacted mixture comprising the metal powders or by means of mechanical combination via matching and heating or by way of diffusion of one or more than one components into the residue. Heat treatment is applied in an intermittent manner to the products obtained, at a temperature range of 200-500° C.

The patent document with patent no. GB257891 titled “Improvements in and relating to alloys containing gold and to methods of making the same” relates to a product obtained by pouring in a mold a suitable stream comprising the molten metal with 25-35% gold, 1-10% aluminum, copper, nickel and silver and also potassium bifluoride and calcium chloride.

The patent document with patent no. WO 1999/064187 titled “the process and mold for making the necklaces” relates to a process covering various stages used to produce especially barrel type or other complex shapes in the field of jewelry. A barrel shape or another more complex shape is molded in an area by means of a first dyeing stage in a precious metal wire fed by a movement occurring at intervals depending on the previously defined step molded by progressing until a previously determined confirmation is achieved and a second dyeing stage progressing in a precious metal band or plate fed by a movement at intervals and according to a previously determined step. During the dyeing operation completed at said first dyeing stage and the first dyeing stage of the process, the wire is placed into the band or the plate. Said wire is shaped for every subsequent step. It has a section between the parts of the pair and a pair of the parts having a slightly bigger diameter.

As a result, the presence of the need for novelty in the method for combining the gold and other minerals and the inadequacy of the existing solutions have made it necessary to provided an improvement in the relevant art.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

In order to eliminate the drawbacks of the background art, it is an object of the invention to provide a product with a rather low cost as an alternative for the gold and the products thereof which have become very expensive during the recent years due to the increasing price of gold as a result of the instabilities in the world.

Another object of the invention is to reduce the need for gold as the raw material, which is rare in amount, and thus to enable easy access and provision of the raw material.

Another object of the invention is to ensure a high production capacity owing to the easy manufacturing.

Another object of the invention is to obtain strong and durable products owing to the ammonia gas and welding materials used in production.

Another object of the invention is to increase the purchasing power for the consumers owing to obtaining the product, at low cost.

Another object of the invention is to provide high rate of purchasing and preference, owing to the low cost of the product.

Another object of the invention is to make it possible to obtain a jewel, which could otherwise be made by using 10 grams of gold, e.g., with 1 or 1,5 gr of the same owing to this method. This also brings about the less utilization of the gold reserves in the nature.

Another object of the invention is to contribute to both the environment and the national economy, owing to the less utilization of the gold reserves.

The structural and characteristic features and all the advantages of the invention will be better understood from the enclosed drawings and the detailed description where the reference is being made to said drawings, and therefore, the evaluation must be made taking into account said figures and detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is the disassembled perspective view of the layers to be combined.

FIG. 2 a is the perspective view of the fixed plates in the combined state.

FIG. 2 b is the perspective view of the plates whose thickness has been reduced after extrusion from the cylinder.

REFERENCE NUMBERS

-   -   1. Top layer     -   2. Intermediate layer     -   3. Bottom layer     -   A. Fixed structure     -   B. Pressed structure

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to the method of production of the gold and the compositions thereof by placing the gold plate molten in the form of mixture and converted to plate and the other minerals on top of each other, in order to meet the purchasing power of the consumer and to obtain the products at lower cost in the jewelry and jewel sector.

FIG. 1 includes the disassembled perspective view of the layers (1, 2, 3) to be combined. The plates made of said minerals (components) will be referred to as the layers (1, 2, 3). According to this figure, the plate made of gold is the top layer (1), the plate made of silver is the bottom layer (3) and the plate including the welding material is the intermediate layer (2). The production method is described below by means of some examples.

For example, the mixture including the top gold layer (1) formulated as 14 carats and converted to plate is reduced up to a thickness of 1 mm as the top layer (1). Then, the second component is subjected to the same process as the bottom silver layer (3) or another component like brass or the like. The combination of the plates is carried out not during the melting process, but after said melting process. Then the step of placing these two layers (1, 3) on top of one another and fixing and welding the same is carried out.

As seen in FIG. 2 a, when the top layer (1) including the gold mixture with a thickness of 1 mm and the bottom layer (3) including e.g. silver with a thickness of 1 mm are placed on top of each other, the total thickness will be 2 mm. Then these two plates (1, 3) will be fired according to a special welding formula prepared and welded (fixed) to each other so that the top gold layer (1) will be located on the top and the bottom silver layer (3) will be located on the bottom. Following this process, the structure (A) thus fixed has a total thickness of 4 mm.

The fixed structure (A), which has reached the thickness of 4 mm, is finally extruded in the cylinder machine to start making it thinner. During the thinning process, the structure (A) is subjected to tempering (softening) process at intervals. The structure (A) is thinned to desired value, for example from 0.5 micron to 0.30 micron, and thus it is made ready for the mold-pressing process.

When the fixed structure (A), which has passed through the aforesaid processes and is comprised of said components placed on top of each other, is reduced to a thickness of 0.20 micron, for instance, almost half of 0.20 micron, the total thickness of the plate, is the top gold layer (1) and the other half is the silver layer (3). On the other hand, in order to weld (fix) the layers (1, 3) comprising these two components having different melting temperatures, the necessary weld formula and some pressure application and softening techniques are used. The description for the furnace with ammonia gas, which enables the layers (1, 3) to be welded to each other, is provided below.

Below is a sample weld formula (for a determined value of grams):

-   Components used:     -   1) Brass     -   2) Zinc     -   3) Indium or cadmium     -   4) Silver -   Proportions: 100 gr pure silver/780=128,21 total component     (28.21 gr of other minerals is added to 100 grams of silver.) -   Distribution: Brass equivalent to 60,5% of 28.21 grams, that is,     17.07 grams Zinc equivalent to 36,5% of 28.21 grams, that is, 10.30     grams Indium or cadmium equivalent to 3% of 28.21 grams, that is,     0.85 Total 28.21 grams

The total melting temperature for this mixture is 530 degrees centigrade. After this mixture is prepared, it is converted to plate and the intermediate layer (2) is prepared and it is thinned at the heavy cylinders down to a thickness of 0,05 mm. Then, it is placed between e.g. the gold and silver layers (1, 3) previously prepared, and is converted to a single layered structure (B) without any gaps left, by means of the kiln-drying system with ammonia gas.

Then the kiln-drying process is carried out. To the furnace whose temperature has reached 875 degree by means of the heat of the resistances, the ammonia gas is provided by means of an injection system. The reason for providing the ammonia gas by means of a special system is to speed up welding and prevent oxidation, and thus to produce an oxygen-free environment. The layers (1, 3) (with formula as given above) needed to be welded together, after the intermediate layer (2) to serve as the weld is placed between them, are provided to advance on the conveyor band with the aid of the motor with inverter and conveyor. The length of the furnace is 1,5 m. The time needed for the component layers (1, 2, 3) placed onto the band to exit at the other end in the form of the welded (fixed) structure (B) is 2 to 4 minutes.

Cylinder machine, contrary to the similar machines, has an improved and strengthened transmission. In addition, the parts bearing the cylinders are supplemented with the automatic lubrication and water cooling system. The cylinder used is capable of imparting a pressure between 4 to 6 tons.

When the structure (A) formed by the two main layers (1, 3) and the intermediate layer (2) serving as the welding placed on top of each other is considered in the form of 3 layers, for instance the following will be obtained:

1. The gold plate, which is the top layer (1), is about 1 mm thick. 2. The welding mixture plate containing silver, which is the intermediate layer (2), is 0.20 mm thick. 3. The silver plate, which is the bottom layer (3), is 1.1 mm thick. Thus the total thickness is 3.30 mm. And these are welded together to be fixed in the form of the top gold layer (1), the intermediate layer (2) containing the welding material and the bottom silver layer (3).

FIG. 2 b includes the perspective view of the structure (B) formed by the thinned plates (1, 2, 3) after being extruded from the cylinder. Fixed structure (A) is extruded from the cylinder to obtain a structure (B) where it is thinned by 005 mm to 030 mm. This process is called the Gold & Silver sandwiching” technique. If one needs to give an example to enable better understanding of the product obtained, when the structure is imagined to be a leaf paper, the bottom and the top side thereof may be described to comprise silver and gold, respectively.

The bottom silver layer (3) remains inside at the end of the processes under the pressing or extruding technique to convert it to a jewel. The top layer (1) seen is gold, but it is as explained above, definitely not a plating technique. It is a method that involves fixing two fixed layers (1, 3) (components) to one another.

According to another embodiment of the invention, if it is needed to cover the bottom side (layer) (3) in some models, this part prepared by cover is covered directly by 925 carat silver (bottom layer) (3).

According to another embodiment of the invention, if it is needed to sew the layers (1, 3) by way of pinning the same, the pins are sewn with 925 carat silver. Consequently, the gold appears only at the parts where it should provide its image, and it is used in a very low amount.

The protective scope of the present application is determined in the part of claims, and the scope may by no means be limited to the description above provided only by way of example. It is obvious that a person skilled in the art may also provide the innovative step of the invention by using the similar embodiments and/or apply this embodiment to other fields with similar purpose used in the relevant art. Consequently, such embodiments would obviously lack the criteria of innovative step. 

1. The invention is a method for combining the different minerals used for the jewels, wherein, it comprises the following process steps: Thinning the bottom and the top layers, fixing the bottom and the top layers to each other, thinning by means of pressing the structure that forms as a result of fixing the bottom and the top layers, preparing the mixture comprising the welding material in the form of a plate and thus forming the intermediate layer, placing the intermediate layer comprising the welding material between the two layers and injecting an oxygen-repelling gas, in order to obtain a fixed structure by means of kiln-drying process carried out for a certain time at a particular temperature, obtaining the thin structure by thinning the obtained fixed structure by means of pressing.
 2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the ammonia gas is used during the kiln-drying process, in order to speed up the welding (fixing) process and to prevent oxidation, and thus to form an oxygen-free environment.
 3. The invention is a structure formed by combining different minerals used for the jewels, wherein, it comprises at least one top layer, at least one bottom layer and at least one intermediate layer containing the welding material, in order to provide the fixing of said layers by means of kiln-drying.
 4. A structure according to claim 3, wherein it comprises the fixed structure formed as a result of fixing the said layers.
 5. A structure according to claim 3, wherein it comprises the pressed structure obtained by pressing the said structure formed as a result of fixing.
 6. A structure according to claim 3, wherein said top layer comprises gold and the derivates thereof.
 7. A structure according to claim 3, wherein said bottom layer comprises silver and the derivates thereof.
 8. A structure according to claim 3, wherein said intermediate layer comprises the individuals or combinations of brass, zinc, indium, cadmium and silver. 